Citation Nr: 1801740
Decision Date: 01/10/18 Archive Date: 01/23/18
DOCKET NO. 15-30 144 ) DATE
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On appeal from the
Department of Veterans Affairs Regional Office in Wilmington, Delaware
THE ISSUE
Entitlement to service connection for peripheral neuropathy.
REPRESENTATION
Appellant represented by: Delaware Commission of Veterans Affairs
ATTORNEY FOR THE BOARD
C. Teague, Associate Counsel
INTRODUCTION
The Veteran, who is the appellant in the instant appeal, served in the United States Army from May 1969 to March 1971. The Veteran was awarded the Vietnam Service Medal and Vietnam Campaign Medal, among other decorations, for this service.
This matter came before the Board of Veterans' Appeals (Board) on appeal from a September 2014 rating decision of the Wilmington, Delaware, Regional Office (RO).
FINDING OF FACT
The Veteran died in October 2015.
CONCLUSION OF LAW
Due to the death of the Veteran, the Board has no jurisdiction to adjudicate the merits of this appeal at this time. 38 U.S.C. § 7104 (a) (West 2012); 38 C.F.R.
§ 20.1302 (2017).
REASONS AND BASES FOR FINDINGS AND CONCLUSION
Unfortunately, the appellant died during the pendency of the appeal. As a matter of law, appellants' claims do not survive their deaths. Zevalkink v. Brown, 102 F.3d 1236, 1243-44 (Fed. Cir. 1996); Smith v. Brown, 10 Vet. App. 330, 333-34 (1997); Landicho v. Brown, 7 Vet. App. 42, 47 (1994). This appeal on the merits has become moot by virtue of the death of the appellant and must be dismissed for lack of jurisdiction. See 38 U.S.C. § 7104 (a) (West 2012); 38 C.F.R. § 20.1302 (2017).
In reaching this determination, the Board intimates no opinion as to the merits of this appeal or to any derivative claim brought by a survivor of the Veteran.
38 C.F.R. § 20.1106 (2017).
The Board's dismissal of this appeal does not affect the right of an eligible person to file a request to be substituted as the appellant for purposes of processing the claim to completion. Such request must be filed not later than one year after the date of the appellant's death. See 38 U.S.C. § 5121A (West 2012); 38 C.F.R. § 3.1010(b) (2017). A person eligible for substitution includes "a living person who would be eligible to receive accrued benefits due to the claimant under section 5121(a) of this title " 38 U.S.C. § 5121A (West 2012); see 38 C.F.R. § 3.1010(a) (2017). An eligible party seeking substitution in an appeal that has been dismissed by the Board due to the death of the claimant should file a request for substitution with the VA office from which the claim originated (listed on the first page of this decision). 38 C.F.R. § 3.1010(b) (2017).
ORDER
The appeal is dismissed.
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H. SEESEL
Veterans Law Judge, Board of Veterans' Appeals
Department of Veterans Affairs